A lot has changed about the Keystone Centre since Ron Chipperfield last played for the Brandon Wheat Kings.
The dressing room has been newly renovated, as has the office. The Wheat Kings now play in the WHL rather than the WCHL. The seats have been changed out multiple times and are now a sleek black colour. But the pride Chipperfield felt at having played for the home team in that building hadn’t changed, and it shone through as he was named to the Wheat Kings Hall of Fame.
“The Wheat Kings office has completely changed in a better way since I played,” Chipperfield said with a grin. “It was great to come back. I enjoyed the night thoroughly.”
Chipperfield was inducted alongside fellow former Wheat King Ray Allison, who was not able to attend in person but sent the team a video message thanking them for his induction. Chipperfield was on hand in person at the Black and Gold Gala, at which the current members of the Wheat Kings were also in attendance.
“My time with the Wheat Kings was a very important time for me growing up,” he said. “Learning to play the game, learning to be a good person, the kids are in that time for one, two, three, maybe four years, it’s a very short time. They have to really grab onto it and appreciate it, and try to grow as a player and a person.”
Chipperfield, a Brandon native, was prolific during his time with the Wheat Kings. He posted 261 goals (over a goal per game) and 470 points over four seasons, and parlayed his time with the Wheat Kings into a professional career that saw him play in both the World Hockey Association and the NHL.
“Will is much stronger than skill,” Chipperfield said, offering a lesson to the current group of Wheat Kings. “You have to learn to be a good person, a good player, and learn the fundamentals and hard work. If you put in the work and learn the fundamentals, you have a chance to be a really good player. If you think you’re going to survive on skill alone, no chance.”
Representing his hometown team for four seasons, Chipperfield has plenty of memories, but years later one stands out. His was the team that christened the new Keystone Centre in 1972 and it was a big step up from the team’s former home.
“We came from the Manex Arena, and that was a 1500-seat arena, a good arena for a small town,” said Chipperfield. “Moving into the Keystone was really, really something. It was one of the best days of my life, moving into the new, bigger arena and the dressing rooms and everything that came with it.”
Ask most junior hockey players about the best part of the business, and their thoughts will go to the room and the friends they’ve made on the team. It was refreshing to learn from Chipperfield that not only was that the case in his playing days, but the friends he made playing for the Wheat Kings are still in touch with him and the team is still close over five decades later.
“We had a reunion last year and one three years ago, and we’re having one this summer,” Chipperfield said. “We had 17 guys from the 1974 team come to that reunion out of maybe 22. We were really close, the team was really close. It begins at the top, you need to learn things from your coaches and managers, and from the billets and all the people you meet along the way. But the most important thing is to keep those friends close and enjoy them in the future.”
